From the Moment I Met You
by Truth Masquerader
Summary: Naruto is Hokage and Sasuke has returned, all is resolved...except for Naruto and Sakura's story that is. Romance occurs and hilarity ensues as the story continues.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

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><p>A faint breeze drifted throughout Konoha as the afternoon heat began to fade and the night's cool air settled in. As the last rays of light were shining I continued to stare at the Konoha Memorial, its dark oblique color and engraved names dredged up memories of the Fourth Great Shinobi War that had ended just five years previous. My eyes slightly watered as they roamed over the names that decorated the stone, many of whom I had attended the Ninja Academy with before I ever knew the horrors of war….we were so young then. I was woken from my reverie by a whispered "Sakura-Chan…"<p>

I hadn't even noticed his presence behind me up until that point, but then again he was Hokage for a reason.

I turned and smiled affectionately at the blonde and took a moment to contemplate his achievements, the largest being the tall slender silent man who stood a few steps behind him on his right; Sasuke Uchiha.

_Flasback: End of Fourth Shinobi War_

"_Narutooo!" , I yelled as he and a dark haired boy fell from the sky only to land on the cold hard ground below. I ran screaming and my heart felt as though it would burst through my chest. I dropped to my knees and frantically searched for signs of life from the two figures that lay prone on the ground before me. Crystal blue eyes suddenly opened and held mine as chapped lips managed to hoarsely croak "I told you I would bring him home, neh Sakura-chan?" Not soon after followed his trademark grin I had grown to love as I wiped tears from my eyes and again double checked Sauske's pulse. Now reassured by Naruto's words and Sasuke's steady heartbeat, a quiet relief settled throughout my body and I allowed chakra exhaustion to overtake me._

_I woke up not too long after in the Konoha Hospital where Naruto, Sasuke, and I shared a companionable silence as we took in the moment of being reunited…_

_Well this silence occurred after Naruto, of course, was brought the ramen that he had begged for as soon as we were all awake. _

_I would never know what exactly went on between him and Sasuke during their fight before they joined forces to take down Madara, but I had faith in Naruto; only he could have brought the rebellious Uchiha home. _

_Tsunade entered our hosipital room and informed us that Sasuke was to be reinstated as a genin and would be able to take the chunin exams in a year and would also be under surveillance for the next two years. With a simple "Hnn," he acknowledged that he had heard and understood the conditions given to him, but we all knew that underneath his cold exterior he was grateful and you could even literally see his shoulders lose their tension as he allowed relief to take over. _

_Naruto on the other hand exuberantly exclaimed while laughing "Haha! The almighty Uchiha gets stuck with D-rank missions….for a year! Have fun chasing cats and pulling weeds!" _

"_Naruto last time I checked you had yet to pass the chunin exams thus making you a genin as well, In fact you can help out Sasuke with his missions." _

"_Nani? But Baa-chan, I just defeated Sasuke and Madaara! I can't still possibly be a….Owww, Sakura-channn that hurt!" _

"_Good" I replied as Naruto nursed his sore head. "I'm sorry about that Tsunade –sama" and with a nod of her head and a slight smile gracing her lips she left our room as Sasuke smirked and Naruto continued to grumble under his breath. Kakashi had shown up at the window and I simply took in the scene and smiled, we were Team 7 again. _

Back to present:

"Uh Sakura-chan?" I looked up to see Naruto was now standing directly in front of me peering into my face while waving his hand in front of my eyes, his whisker marks adorning his cheeks. I thought it was funny that through the years he still added the chan to my name, it was just one of the things I loved about him.

"Sorry Naruto, just thinking. So to what do I owe this unexpected visit?"

Naruto surprisingly took his job very seriously and was constantly found in his office with piles of paperwork surrounding him. Being the Chief Medic since Tsunade had retired; I was just as busy attending to patients and overseeing and training new medics. Sasuke had ended up joining the ANBU and when he wasn't on a mission he could be found trailing Naruto like a shadow. While we were all still close our busy schedules didn't leave us a lot of time to hang out like we had been able to before.

Naruto's face instantly lit up and I could see that he was excited for whatever he was about to tell me-

"Dobe here wants to get ramen tonight and he booked one of the training grounds for us tomorrow morning."

Naruto's happiness instantly deflated as he turned to Sasuke and said with a childish pout "Teme, I wanted to tell her!" I laughed as they started thier bickering, which seemed to consist of Naruto complaining that he had wanted to tell me since it was his idea and Sasuke saying that it didn't matter either way. It was always a funny site; Naruto in his regal Hokage robes and Sasuke in his sleek ANBU uniform arguing, they reminded me of two kids who were playing dress up. My laughter only doubled when we had reached Ichiraku's and Sai, who Naruto had also invited, commented that Naruto when pouting reminded him of the frogs that were his summons. After Danzo's death Sai had improved drastically on being able to understand emotions and even finally stopped reading books as a source of information and turned to us to learn about social interactions. He really was a good guy-

"Well it's not as bad as Sakura, when she laughs she only looks even Uglier."

My head slowly turned to the artistic ninja and as he smiled; Sasuke and Naruto took the opportunity to sit as far away from me as possible.

"Now now Sakura-chan, you know Sai, he was only kidding, right Sai?" Naruto began to plead, but before the pale boy could even open his mouth to answer I had already landed one of my chakra enhanced punches on him. Even Sasuke shuddered as he watched him sail upwards and then finally land on the ground.

While my temperament I would like to think had evened out over the years, Sai still managed to get under my skin like only Sai could. Reluctantly I got up to heal him and then bid "my boys," as I affectionately like to call them, good night and that I would see them in the morning for our sparring session. What I failed to see was the sad smile that graced Naruto's face as I left.

Naruto P.O.V

"Goodnight Naruto! Goodnight Sasuke-kun! See you in the morning!" My smile instantly fell as I heard the kun placed after his name. I knew that it shouldn't still hurt, but it did, it always did…

"Just tell her Naruto." I looked up at the person who held her heart and while I could never hate him for it, I still envied him.

"Sasuke…you know I'm not what she wants."

I then turned to watch as she faded into the distance, taking a piece of me with her….

"Well I remember there are a couple of things I need to pick up from the office, so see ya bright and early and be ready for me to kick your butt!"

"Whatever dobe." I knew that he knew I was lying, but that was one good thing about Sasuke he always seemed to get when I just needed space.

Sakura P.O.V

Not even the first rays of sunlight were shining as I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock and remembered I would be sparring with Naruto and Sasuke today. Rolling out of bed it was a nice change to be able to dress in my former ninja attire instead of my hospital uniform, sometimes I really missed being able to go on various missions, ever since I had decided to focus my concentration on being a medical shinobi rather than a field shinobi. I walked into my kitchen and grabbed an apple and began to cut when I heard a knock on my door, but before I could get up Naruto had already let himself in with the spare keys I had given him when I had first moved out of my parents house and into my own apartment a few years back. While it was nice having him be able to pick up my mail when I was gone or water my plants, the boy still didn't understand that after you knocked you waited a moment before barging in.

"Hey Sakura-chan! I was on my way to the training grounds and I thought I would stop by and that way we could walk together!"

The training grounds were closer to his apartment rather than mine, but I thought it was sweet that he had decided to come and pick me up. The blonde was wearing his famous orange suit and I couldn't help but smile; only Naruto could pull off wearing such a ridiculously obnoxious color. "Apple?" I asked figuring he probably hadn't eaten breakfast.

"Naw I had some instant ramen before I left."

"Naruto, you can't eat ramen all the time, do you realize how unhealthy that is?"

"Aww Sakura-chan, you know me and ramen, it's an age old love story!"

"Well when you start feeling sick and getting fat don't come crying to me."

As we started towards the training ground I could still hear him mumbling about how nobody could understand him and ramen. Good grief you would think the boy was married to the food. As we stopped in the village for a moment so that I could pick up some new kunai that I had ordered, I smiled as I watched some of the village kids run up to Naruto screaming "Hokage-sama! Hokage-sama! Is it true you have a demon fox in you? How did you defeat Madara? Watch this Hokage, I can create a clone now!" It didn't seem too long ago that the villagers would whisper as he walked through the streets and shielded their children from him. Naruto had come a long way since then and I don't think there was even one person in the village that didn't admire and respect him.

"Shouldn't you kids be heading to the Academy right about now?"

"Aww Sakura-san!" they all chorused, but I kindly sent them on their way as Naruto made sure to tell them each goodbye and that he would answer their questions later.

"They really do love you Naruto."

He grinned and rubbed his neck looking almost sheepish as we continued our walk. After so many years of seeking attention, now that he actually got it, it was cute to see that he almost didn't exactly know what to do with it all.

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><p>After we had been sparring for a few hours I sat down under the shade of a tree to take a break, while I prided myself with being on par with my boys they both had an almost insane amount of chakra and after awhile I just couldn't keep up.<p>

"Forehead! What are you doing here? Hanging with your boys?"

"Ino-pig I could ask you the same question." I laughed as I embraced my friend. After the war we had gotten extremely close, especially now that we weren't both chasing after the same guy. Ino, though she constantly denied it had taken a liking to her lazy teammate and everyone knew it wouldn't be too long before the two started dating….at least I hoped it wouldn't be too long, I had recently entered the bet as to when the two would hook up and being the competitive person I am, I wanted to win….nor did I feel like losing my money.

"I was sent to track down that knuckleheaded Hokage of ours. The council has some building contract they needed to be signed by today, so they sent the first person they saw to find him, which of course happened to be me." I watched as she stared at Naruto and Sasuke battling it out-

"Not that I mind."

"Wait not that you mind what?"

"Not that I mind tracking him down. I mean look at him Sakura, your teammate is hot, actually they both are. And to think I got stuck with the fatty and the laziest shinobi in Konoha." I smiled knowing she thought the world of her teammates.

"Yeah I guess they are," I then took the chance to gaze at the two ninja that held Ino's attention….she was right, they both were undeniably attractive. Sasuke still had that tall dark and handsome look while Naruto….well Naruto was kind of like the sun bright huge and glowing. They really were different. Apparently having finally reached their limit the two made their way over and I blushed noticing they both were shirtless; I blamed Ino and her recent comment that made me ogle at their physique. Sasuke was lean, while Naruto was on the broader side and a bit taller. When my eyes started drifting lower I decided this was probably a good time for me to stop my lustful thoughts and concentrate on healing the two as I always did after a spar.

"Go ahead and sign this so I can get back to work Naruto, it's the building contract for the new greenhouse they want to build near the hospital." demanded Ino as she flipped her hair impatiently and gave the contract to Naruto who scribbled his name on the document as he sat down and waited for me to start healing his injuries.

With a final wink at me Ino bounced off as I began healing Naruto and then not soon after Sasuke. Their competitiveness had not been dulled over the years and if anything it had only gotten stronger. There had definitely been several times where I had ended up healing not only nicks and bruises, but broken bones as well.

"At this rate I'm going to have to start charging you two for my healing services." I joked.

Naruto P.O.V

I watched as her hands drifted over my body, their green glow always hovering, but never touching. I allowed myself to wonder what it would feel like for her just to touch me and not even in a sexual way, but just a simple touch on the cheek or something, anything….

Lost in my thoughts I tripped over a root as I got up and landed-

Sakura P.O.V

I began to laugh when Naruto had gotten up and immediately tripped over some root. It wasn't until Sasuke had turned from his sitting position to see what had happened, when Naruto unable to stop himself, landed on Sasuke and crashed into his face, their lips touching…. Unable to contain myself I broke into hysterics when they both clumsily untangled themselves and recoiled from each other; Naruto stormed off shouting profanities, while Sasuke stood glaring with perhaps one of the most hate filled stares I had seen on him in a long time. All the while tears were pouring down my face as I took in the scene unfolding before me.

"Son of a- It was bad enough you stole my first kiss, but now the second? You.."

"Stole? If you weren't so clumsy this would have never happened in the first place!...or the second for that matter!"

"Ughhh just stop talking about it!"

"You were the one who tripped!"

"Blah, blah, blah."

"Stop, stop. You guys are killing me," I finally managed to say through my tears and laughter. And then it occurred to me that Naruto had said that was only his second kiss….surely at some point in time he had kissed a girl. Hadn't he? I simply opened my mouth stunned. Now thinking back I couldn't recall seeing or hearing about Naruto going on any dates, but he had to realize that practically every girl in the village would kill for a chance to date him, I mean he was the Hokage for crying out loud...we were 20 years old now. I looked over to Sasuke and remembered my silly crush, though I had forgiven him I could never forget all that he put me through...all that he put us through.

"Stupid Uchiha." As I looked up I noticed the brooding black haired ninja walking away as Naruto continued his whining.

"Hahaha, oh gosh, hahaha. Sorry Naruto I'm done now, I promise." I finally stopped my laughter for poor Naruto's sake, the poor guy could never catch a break.

"It's alright Sakura-chan, I will allow you to go on a date with me to make up for it," he said with a smile on his lips.

"Allow me?"

"Yep, I mean who wouldn't want to to go on a date with the hot Hokage."

I watched as he wiggled his eyes suggestively and-

"Naruto! You were listening to me and Ino's conversation weren't you?"

"Maybeee," I watched as he walked away his booming laughter echoing through the village.


	2. Chapter 2

I wearily opened the hospital door and walked out into the night. Today had been even busier than usual and I felt as though I had performed surgery after surgery until the whole day had become one gigantic blur. I trudged through Konoha's dirt paved streets, now for the most part abandoned, it was a little after sunset, but I felt like it was after midnight. Maybe my former mentor was right, I really need a break.

The more I thought about it the more appealing the idea sounded. There was that new spa that just opened this year…I had even forgotten Ino had gotten me a three day trip there for my birthday a little while back. Lost in my day dreams of a relaxing day at the spa I didn't even notice I was home until I almost tripped over the new flower pot I had just placed outside of my apartment complex a few days ago. I dragged myself upstairs and stopped at my door to get my keys.

"Stupid keys, where did I put them…" as I continued to grumble and search through the bottomless pit that is my purse, my door flew open and well my fist flew too, not soon after, into the person standing in my doorway.

"Sakur...What the…..Ow " I gasped realizing the "intruder" was my blonde best friend, who at the moment was clutching his nose as blood trickled down his hands.

"Ughhh, Damn Sakura-chan, that hurt!"

"Oh gosh Naruto I'm so sorry, I was tired and I didn't…..You Baka! What are you doing in my house to begin with?"

Said man lifted his head up and opened his eyes as a light blush began to spread across his cheeks...

"Well you see, I remembered that you said you didn't have a date for Valentine's Day and well yeah…" he trailed off clearly embarrassed and turning redder by the second as he tried to hold his bloody nose while explain to me why he was in my apartment.

Today was Valentine's Day? I had completely forgot; Hmm that would explain the numerous amounts of broken bones belonging to disgruntled males that I was forced to heal today. Before I could ask what Valentine's Day had to do with his spontaneous visit to my apartment, I looked behind him and found that my table was decorated with red and white roses in the center and an obviously home cooked meal spread out just waiting to be eaten.

"You cooked for me?" I asked astonished. Naruto had always been thoughtful, but I even paused a moment to ponder on just how thoughtful he was.

_Flashback: A few weeks previous_

_I was walking through the village with Naruto and Sasuke on our way to lunch during our breaks , when I spotted not too far away a man giving a girl flowers and while this wasn't some out of the ordinary spectacular event, I began to think about how I had never been given flowers and that it would be nice to receive such a classic and beautiful gift._

"_What's so great about flowers?" I turned from the charming site and glared at the blonde who had noticed where I was gazing. Honestly sometimes the boy was just about as dense as they come._

"_Naruto it's not the fact that flowers are some grandiose gift, it's just the fact that they're flowers and someone is thoughtful enough to give them." _

_Naruto obviously not understanding simply shook his head and smiled his smile that I knew meant he was confused and wanted to drop the subject, so I moved on._

Back to Present

After recalling this conversation I looked at Konoha's Hokage and my heart was instantly filled with a love towards the caring blonde who not understanding the significance of flowers knew that they were important to me and that was all that mattered.

Naruto's P.O.V

Crap my nose still hurt I thought, as I awkwardly stood by her door waiting for her to say something. All she asked was if I had cooked for her, to which fortunately I managed to nod yes while wondering if that was going to be the only reaction I was to get from the petite girl.

Okay yeah my nose definitely had to be broken, it was hurting like hell now.

For what felt like forever she continued to stare at the dinner and flowers that I had arranged on her table and I thought about how this little pink haired girl could make me feel so vulnerable and anxious when it came to knowing her opinion.

Finally she turned towards me and I watched as her eyes seemed to brim with tears as she regarded me…Oh gosh, did she hate it? Maybe she thought when I had mentioned she didn't have a date for Valentine's Day that I was just trying to cheer her up or something.

"Sakura-chan if you hate it that's ok…I mean maybe it was a stupid idea anyways….I just thought you know that…"

"I love it Naruto."

"Heh heh, I mean Ino had to even tell me what color roses to get because I didn't….Wait you like it?"

My face instantly lit up into a smile and I relaxed relived in knowing that I had made her happy.

Sakura's P.O.V

"Well let's go ahead and eat, I'm starving!" I started toward the kitchen when I heard a…

"Um Sakura-chan do you think you could, ya know fix my nose real quick? It kinda hurts."

"Oh right…." I grimaced as I somehow gathered what little remaining chakra I had left to efficiently fix his nose and leave me with enough to last until I decided to go to bed.

Before I sat down I gently touched the roses soft petals and again smiled at Naruto's thoughtfulness as I bit down into the delicious meal prepared me.

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><p>"Hahahaha I don't know, I think it was even funnier when you fell off the bridge that time and that duck bit you in the butt! You couldn't sit for like a week!"<p>

"That, Sakura-chan, was not funny," he replied with a grin on his face. We had finished our meal and were now lounging about on my couch just reminiscing on the good times we have experienced over the years.

It was always nice to just sit around and talk with Naruto; he had a way of making your problems disappear and keeping a constant smile on your face.

"Well I better go ahead and head home, I've gotta be up early for a meeting with some delegates the Mizukage sent to discuss some trade agreements."

I smiled, my boy had definitely grown up. Who would've thought Naruto would take his role so seriously…then again Shikamaru, who was now Naruto's top advisor, did tell me that just last week he had to use his shadow jutsu to make sure Naruto attended a meeting instead of going to the "Buy one, get one free special" going on at his favorite ramen stand.

"Oh yeah before I go…well here." In his outstretched hand lay a fluffy white teddy bear with a heart shaped nose.

I reached for the gift and hugged it to my chest, I loved it. I then pulled my friend into a hug and felt as he slowly but surely embraced me back.

"Thanks Naruto, I love it."

"Good," I watched as he gave me one of his trademark grins and then bid me goodnight and left.

It wasn't until after he was long gone that I sighed, realizing he had left me to clean up all the dishes by myself.

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><p>I'm new at this and don't have a beta reader so reviews and constructive criticism are definitely welcome.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Sakuta POV

I tapped my foot impatiently as a waited for Ino to show. That girl was always late and as much as I wanted to have some girl talk, I also wanted to go to bed on time. I looked around taking in the restaurants familiar scenery; this had to be my favorite place to go. It was organized and classy. The food served consisted of mostly breads and pastries along with sandwiches and anything with fruits and vegetables, it was a medic's/healthfreak's paradise.

I glanced at the large clock hung on the wall adjacent to the window that I was seated beside-

"30 minutes?…Ino usually isn't this late…"

Just as I was about to grab my purse and leave, a flash of platinum blonde hair started running towards me-

"You will NEVER guess what just happened!"

"Um besides you being late for our dinner?"

"Okay yeah my bad, but Shikamaru asked me on a date!" Ino, though she was trying to convey this in her normal gossipy way, I could tell she was secretly seeking my confirmation that the lazy pineapple head really did like her and she wasn't letting her imagination get the best of her. Ino exuded confidence and the fact that when it came to her genius teammate she automatically started second guessing herself truly meant she cared for him.

I then remembered that I had bet they wouldn't start dating until next week….

"Thanks a lot Shikamaru; you just couldn't wait." I grumbled to myself.

"What?"

"Nothing nothing. I'm really happy for you Ino. I can tell that he loves you and well it's about time he made a move." A smile of pure joy lit up her face as she then began explaining how it all happened and when it was taking place. I listened just content knowing that my friend had finally gotten the happiness she deserved and was done dating guys that weren't worth her time.

"Sooo the other day a certain hyperactive Hokage walked into my store and bought some flowers. Any idea as to who they were for? Eh Sakura?" I watched as her grin of joy turned into one sly and curious.

Ino POV

I knew I had to be on to something! Forehead's cheeks were turning just as red as Naruto's were when he bought the flowers. Everyone knows he loved her and still does; I mean all she has to do is walk into the room and he smiles like a child opening a present at Christmas. Honestly it is high time she makes a decision about her own feelings.

Sakura POV

I let out a sigh as I explained, "Naruto just was being thoughtful since I didn't have a date for Valentine's Day. You know how kind he is, he was just trying to help out."

"Sakura come on, you know he's still in love with you."

I thought back to when we were sixteen and Sai had told me that Naruto loved me and winced as I recalled how my plan of confessing to him, so that he wouldn't go after Sasuke, had backfired….Surely if Naruto still felt that way he would have said something by now.

"Ino don't you think if that were true he would have said something by now? I mean he's my best friend."

"That's just it Sakura, he's your best friend; he doesn't want to ruin the friendship you have." For someone apparently smart enough to be Tsunade's apprentice, she sure is stupid…then again she has always been stupid when it comes to guys.

"I doubt it Ino, I mean it was a silly childhood crush; kind of like the one I had on Sasuke."

I could see there was no point in arguing with her; when Sakura makes up her mind, she makes up her mind. "Yeah I guess so."

For some reason after Ino confirmed what I had been saying a slight knot formed in my stomach; must have been something I ate…

"Speaking of teammates did you know Chouji's dating Ayame!" One good thing about being Konoha's number one gossip queen's best friend is that you are always filled in.

"That's great! It looks like he has finally gained some confidence in himself." Soon we were off on tangents regarding the Rookie Nine and their lives; the subject of Naruto completely forgotten.

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><p>We both having finished dinner made our way to the Hokage tower where I had just remembered I needed to pick up the new list of potential medics that my blonde teammate had waiting for me. Ino of course tagged along in hopes of seeing Shikamaru. As the dark began to settle in me and Ino drifted into a companionable silence, I thought about how much I love this village. It wasn't until after the war that I had realized exactly what the Will of Fire is that the Third Hokage had at one point talked to us about. It was about a love for this village, but more importantly the desire to make it a place where children can be raised in peace and tranquility, so that one day they too can raise another generation to look after this village. I only hoped the generation after ours would be as close as me and my friends are.<p>

Having finally reached Naruto's office I barged right on in (Naruto's secretaries knew that after I had punched a hole in the wall from having to wait to see my best friend that it was better to simply let me in) as Ino checked an adjacent room for signs of Shikamaru.

I was instantly greeted by a loud "Sakura-channnn!"

"Naruto, you said you had the-

"Mah, Mah. That can wait, I just found out today that Shikamaru and Ino are dating; meaning I won the bet! Pay up!" He excitedly exclaimed. One thing was for sure, being Hokage would never erase his sense of humor nor love for practical jokes.

"Ughh. How did you even find ou-

For the second time I was interrupted by a blonde…..except this blonde was angry.

"Sakura! You made a bet on my relationship? And you! You are Hokage! What's your excuse?"

As I tried to formulate a response that would cause the least amount of drama, a warm rough hand grabbed mine and before I knew it I was dragged out of a window and was now jumping from roof to roof.

I followed the hand conjoined with mine to see it was connected to none other than Naruto; who was laughing like a maniac as we made our….well our escape. I soon was laughing along with the orange wearing ninja as I reveled in the hilarity of the situation. Finally we landed on top of the Hokage Monument; this was one of Naruto's favorite places to be and he could always be spotted up here meditating in the early mornings or late nights.

As I turned to reprimand my friend, it only took one look at his laughter contorted face and I doubled over into hysterics again, clutching at his arm to maintain my balance.

I looked over at her hunched over form as she cackled along with me and I could not think of a more beautiful sight. Her bubblegum hair was messy and her jade eyes were clenched shut as she continued to laugh. Sakura's laugh, not that I would ever tell her, sounded almost like a donkey braying, but I loved it regardless; it was just Sakura.

I soon felt myself pulled into a masculine chest still rumbling with laughter as I drew in a large intake of breath. Naruto's chest was one to die for and I wickedly snuggled closer to get one last feel of it as the hug ended. Who ever said that a girl can't appreciate her best friend's body? Right?

"Naru" I started and then paused to cover up my laughter. "Naurto that was horrible! I can't believe you just made me ditch my best friend and you still have paperwork to finish up!" As I tried to keep the serious look on my face, the corners of my mouth slowly started to lift and I knew I had lost this argument.

"Come on Sakura-chan you know it was funny!"

"Plus I needed to get out of that office anyways." He stated as an afterthought, mostly to himself.

I regarded his worn expression and realized that he might be Hokage, but he still needed to take a break; he was over working himself and it was starting to show. I then grimaced as I thought about how I should probably take my own advice.

"Okay, it was funny….but don't do it again you baka." I knew I hadn't fooled him with my fake anger, because he only simply smiled in response and commented on how poor Shikamaru was probably having to deal with a very angry blonde right about now.

We spent the next hour or so up on the monument as we talked about everything and anything and then all of a sudden I remember nothing.

Naruto POV

As I ranted on about the ridiculousness of the council, I heard a soft snore and felt a head nod into my shoulder and looked over to see Sakura had fallen fast asleep. I chuckled to myself as I remembered my day dreams as a teenager where I would take Sakura up here and we would talk as she laid her head on my shoulder until she fell asleep. I guess this was as close enough as I would ever get to that dream and as that thought weighed on my mind a bitter feeling slowly made its way up until I could almost taste it in my mouth. I silently berated myself, feelings of bitterness would get me nowhere and I had already made up my mind a long time ago that a friendship with her was better than nothing at all. I took in her perfect porcelain skin, which almost glowed in the moonlight as I groaned.

"Why do I torture myself like this?" I voiced to the sky as if somehow it held the answer. When all I got as an answer was the sound of silence, I scooped her up into my arms and made my way to her apartment to put her to bed.

As I made my way down the mountain and into the streets of the village, I saw a woman stumble out of a bar, sake in hand.

"Baa-chan?"

"Ahh, Naruto!" She shouted as she made her way towards me. One thing is for sure, when Tsunade decided to retire she did in every sense of the word, but then again I could think of no one who deserved it more.

"Looks like my apprentice has had a long day, so what were you two lovebirds up to? Hmm?" I shushed her explaining Sakura had fallen asleep and I was taking her home. She then began looking into the distance as a faraway look arose in her eyes.

"Naruto….don't try and grow up too fast." I paused at the serious tone she had taken as her clouded eyes turned and met mine.

"You put everyone before yourself, that's why you are so loved and are a Hokage like the world has never seen, but don't let that stop you from putting yourself first sometimes Naruto…." She said in a gentle manner not like her normal gruff tone. Her eyes then glanced at Sakura who lay still sleeping in my arms and then back to me.

"Take every chance you have….you never know when those chances could disappear." And with that she resumed her clumsy walk toward her house; leaving me to ponder her words under the faint light of a street lamp. I then glanced down at the sleeping girl in my arms and remembered my destination.

As I laid her down in bed and pulled the covers over her I noticed the picture of Team 7 that she kept on her nightstand beside, but what really caught my attention was the photo placed beside it.

_Flashback:_

"_Naruto you're the birthday boy, so I want a picture with you! Now hurry up!" She said impatiently as I made my way through the crowd to the pink haired girl that demanded my attention._

"_I'm coming Sakura-chan!"_

_As I stopped in front of her I couldn't help but be reminded of how beautiful she was; she wore a simple black dress with strappy heel things….or whatever they were called, but they sure looked nice._

"_What's the rush?" She then gave me her most exasperated look as she explained-_

"_Naruto, every time and I mean every time, we are at a party or out to eat, you somehow manage to spill something on yourself and I want a picture before that happens."_

"_Sakura-channn that doesn't happen everyt-" as I spread my arms out to emphasize my point I accidently knocked the punch that Kiba was holding, out of his hands and all over my shirt. Kiba then shouted my name and stalked off to go get some more punch as I turned back to Sakura-_

"_Heh heh, well…"_

"_You baka, just come here and take the picture." She circled her arm around my waist and grinned for the camera as I sheepishly smiled._

I fondly remembered the scene of my 20th birthday and felt an almost sinful satisfaction that she had chosen a picture of me and her before anyone else's. With a renewed confidence I left and before I went to sleep I once again pondered Tsunade's advice.


	4. Chapter 4

Sakura POV

Wearily I opened my eyes as I stretched my arms and yawned. I slowly sat up and began my daily morning routine, consisting of lots of stretching and a few strengthening exercises. I looked out the window at Konoha and the pink tinted clouds and sunrise that hung over it; I could never imagine living anywhere else. I thought back to last night and realized that Naruto must have taken me home because I in no way remembered walking here myself. I let a small frown grace my mouth as I thought of how that boy always seemed to be taking care of me; hmm maybe I should bring some lunch today or something, he really deserves it. I trudged over to the bathroom and started running myself a shower and smiled as my alarm clock began to go off. It was always a source of satisfaction for me to wake before it woke me; I loved early mornings, there was such a peaceful feeling that seemed to accompany them. I soon found myself chuckling as I thought of my best friends who were anything but peaceful, so no wonder I valued it so much. I rinsed my body off, sighing as the hot spray of water from the shower surrounded me like a cocoon of warmth. Finally dressed and ready I headed out to begin another day at the hospital.

"Good Morning Sakura-san, is there anything I can get for you today?" asked our hospital receptionist, Ami, she was a hard working girl and I could always count on her to stay organized and on top of things. While working was always stressful at times, especially the long hours and thankless behind the scene jobs, I had to say that the staff here was amazing and they were all like family to me.

"No I'm fine, but thank you Ami." She nodded her head as she then took an incoming call and I walked back to start my day by taking my rounds of checking on patients.

"Kyoko do think you could try lifting your arm up as high as it can go?" I watched as one of my younger patients concentrated hard as he exerted all the effort he could to lift his arm, which I was proud to say after major reconstructive surgery was doing quite well. He held it above his head for a moment and with a satisfied look, dropped it back down as he let out an intake of breath.

"Good! It's gotten so much better, you have been doing great with your physical therapy exercises, I am very proud of you." I said as I grinned fondly at the little boy who was being so strong for someone his age. He would definitely make a fine shinobi one day.

"Thanks Sakura-sama," he replied bashfully and I once again found myself smiling, this time at his humility. Kids were definitely my weak point, I would do anything for my younger patients and I always took it the hardest when I wasn't able to do enough for them. One thing experience and being a healer had taught me was to push myself and also recognize that I couldn't blame myself for everything, which was probably one of the hardest lessons I've ever had to learn and still struggle with. As I was about to begin Kyoko's second set of exercises I stopped and turned around feeling my dark haired teammates chakra approaching, which for some reason he wasn't trying to conceal.

I stood up just as he entered the doorway with an unreadable expression.

"Sakura you're needed at the gates." Different scenarios played through my mind and all I could think was that somehow another war had been started. Sasuke seeing the color start to drain from my face and a look of determination burn in my eyes realized what I was thinking and cut in-

"Group of strong Rogue-nins. They attacked Kiba's genin team." Sasuke was still a man of few words and I knew I wouldn't know the extent of the situation until I got there.

"Kyoko, keep working on those exercises for me okay?" He nodded his head not completely understanding what was going on. As I ran towards the gates following Sasuke I hoped for the best and felt an all consuming rage fill me as I thought of my friend or any of his pupils being harmed. As I arrived at the scene I immediately saw an orange clad figure wielding his Rasenshuriken taking out what appeared to be the last of the rogue-nins. It wasn't until times like these that I truly was reminded of why my teammate was Hokage and the enormous power that he held.

"Sakura! Sakura!" I whipped my head around to find an exhausted looking Kiba, who was cradling a small child in his arms. If it wasn't for the current situation I would have found the sight endearing. Kiba was foul mouthed and a bit rough around the edges, but once he was around children he was simply a big soft teddy bear, not that any of us would ever point that out to him.

"What happened Kiba?" I asked as I ran my hands over the petite girl in his arms, assessing her injuries and to slowly begin healing her. Most of the damage didn't appear to be external, but internal, which could always be tricky and if handled wrong disastrous.

"I defeated them all I thought….I didn't feel his chakra….He snuck up behind me….all my fault." I watched as the normally cocky man mournfully watched as I healed the small girl….I was a bit baffled myself, while nothing showed on the outside, she was injured internally and was unconscious, it had to be the work of a special jutsu and I reminded myself to inform Naruto about it after I was done healing her. Once I had done a full body scan I realized that it was only internal bruising and not bleeding like I had at first feared.

"Kiba it's alright, this had to be the work of a ninja with a kekkei genkai and she will be fine. It's just some bruising and-"

"But I still failed her."

"Kiba." I watched as he continued to hide his face. "Kiba look at me." Slowly he lifted his head up and our eyes met.

"She will be fine. You were ambushed and had to not only fight, but protect." As I finished the healing I looked around to see her other two teammates standing watching anxiously.

"Her other two teammates are fine. You did all you could, it's going to be okay." He nodded his head and gave me a quick hug as he scooped the girl up in his arms as I instructed him to take her to the hospital and get one of the nurses to start an IV drip.

As soon as he had gone I started searching for Naruto and found him standing over a man I presumed to be one of the attackers. I quickly ran to his side-

"And you still refuse to tell me why you targeted an INNOCENT group of Konoha genin?" Taking a step back from the irate Hokage I watched as the man he was questioning shrank in fear, but still refused to answer. Opposing Naruto was not something anyone in their right mind would do, so either he was crazy or he had something that under any circumstance could not be exposed.

"You will talk. Take him to Ibiki." Like me Naruto's weakness was children and any form of violence towards them was a crime unforgivable in his eyes. I personally believe it came from the upbringing he had. I could never think of little Naruto now without tears coming to my eyes; all I could picture was the villagers as they threw rocks at him, the children mocking him, people hurting him, everyone shunning him….I quickly erased these images from my mind and focused my mind on telling Naruto what I had learned. I reached out and touched his sleeve and he turned towards me, with a look of hatred still marring his normally bright features. Even his crystal blue eyes were darkened.

"Naruto while I was healing the girl-"

"I'm sorry Sakura-chan I can't focus right now, meet me in my office?" and with that said he was gone in a flash. I needed to get back to the hospital, but I knew the information that I possessed could possibly be vital to what was behind the attack, so I made my way toward the Hokage tower.

* * *

><p>As I made my way up the steps and finally in front of the wooden oak doors that his office lay behind I turned to his secretary and asked how he was doing.<p>

She opened her mouth to speak when I heard a crash and an angry shout come from behind the doors.

"Nevermind." I muttered as I pushed my way in. I found the office in a state of disarray with Naruto pacing back and forth with a scroll in hand that he was about to throw.

"Naruto! Enough!" As he turned to me I expected to look into a pair of angry blue eyes, but I was surprised to see them filled with just hurt. Before I could ask him what exactly happened-

"It was her birthday." I looked at Naruto confusion evident in my eyes, but I waited for him to continue.

I could only stare as the strong man in front of me then said, "Birthday's are supposed to be special, ya know Sakura-chan?" The hurt and anger slowly faded from his face leaving a weary looking man it's place. I realized that he must have been talking about the genin girl who I had healed earlier after the attack. A pregnant pause then ensued.

"Gosh I'm sorry Sakura-chan, I'm not sure where all that came from," he said as he embarrassedly laughed.

"So what was it that you needed to-_umph_!" I looked down to see a mass of pink hair buried into my chest as two porcelain arms laced themselves around me. I could feel my face burn and was glad that she couldn't look at me for the moment.

I sighed, I didn't want pity, I guess I had just told her that story to offer an explanation for my behavior. I didn't expect such a violent reaction; not that I minded being hugged by her of course. Gently I took her arms and reluctantly unwound them from my waist.

"Sakura…" as I looked into her jade eyes whatever I was about to say completely vanished from my mind and I was only brought back to reality when she began to speak-

"Naruto you're the happiest person I know and I hope one day I can be as content as you, but please just remember that you're only human and it's good for you to be able to vent every once and awhile. I wish there was more I could do for you..." I smiled grateful to know it wasn't pity she was feeling, but I also didn't want her feeling she did nothing for me, when it was such the opposite-

"Sakura-chan you do everything for me, just by being you."

I gasped, while from any other male that statement I would regard as being cheesy and cliché, from Naruto it was honest and heartfelt…maybe Ino was right, could he still love me? Before I could mull over these thoughts even more Naruto interrupted by giving me more details about the attack and then asked me to share what I knew.

After I had gone over my suspicions with him, he paused to think as he picked up the thrown scrolls from around the room.

"Hmm I don't think rogue-nin with such elevated skills would be behind such a petty attack." Having my worst fears confirmed my blonde teammate asked me if I would send Shikamaru to him on my way back to the hospital. I agreed and left his office deep in thought about the current situation and what it might mean.

* * *

><p>Arriving at the hospital I was greeted by everyone curious to know what had just gone on, but I simply informed them that their Hokage had it under control and the situation had been dealt with. People of course still had questions and I knew that it was going to be one long afternoon. I quickly walked into my office and sighed as I slid down the door and sat on the floor.<p>

"So dobe is stressed." I yelped and the voice that seemed to appear out of nowhere as I looked up to see Sasuke perched on top of my desk.

"Sasuke! You scared me! How many times have I told you that you can't just sneak up on people like that?" He gave me one of his bored looks and repeated his previous statement.

"Dobe is stressed." I then noticed the uncomfortable look that he wore on his face and I burst out laughing. Through my laughter I saw the annoyed Uchiha move to exit the room, but I grabbed his hand and pulled him down into one of the chairs in my office.

"Sorry Sasuke, I didn't mean to laugh, you just have the oddest way of looking out for us."

"Hn."

"And yes I know hes stressed. I just don't know what to do at this point, I mean hes the Hokage, he can't just abandon his duties." A thoughtful look crossed his face as he began to think. I couldn't help be proud of him, I knew that he truly cared for us both. What he said next though I did not expect and asked him if he would repeat himself.

"I said I think you should go on a date with him," he said with his normal indifference and then left the room. I was left looking like a fish with my mouth wide open. Number one since when did Sasuke play matchmaker? And number two...what did a date have to do with Naruto being stressed? Confused and tired I sat down at my desk and plopped my head down...what a day.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura POV

It was about a week since I had last seen Naruto and-

"Ugh stupid Sasuke!" Every since he had made the suggestion that I go on a date with Naruto my mind had been plagued by thoughts of well, Naruto. It wasn't like it was even a big deal; Naruto has asked me on dates ever since we were twelve, but at some point it had just become a casual joke between us, nothing serious. And that was where my stress was coming from, it was supposed to be nothing serious and Sasuke had gone and completely obliterated the comical way in which I viewed dating Naruto. If it were anyone else who had made the suggestion I could've brushed it off, but Sasuke was Naruto's best friend…

"Stupid Uchiha...should've left him…ruins everything." I muttered as I practically stormed down the streets of the marketplace where I was shopping. I stopped at a vendor and began examining some fruit. I loved grocery shopping at the marketplace, it was normally a relaxing time for me; a break in my hectic schedule. As I was placing my purchases in the bag I looked at the lemon that was in my hand and thought of Naruto and his blond hair.

"Ughh! Stupid lemons!" The elderly fruit vendor looked up and cautiously asked-

"Honey are you alright?"

"No, no I'm not. Even lemons remind me of him. What's wrong with me?" I practically screamed. I felt as though at this point I was losing my already less than stable mind and of course temper.

The old lady moved her small wrinkly hand up to her mouth to try and cover her up poorly suppressed laughter. "Oh sweetheart it's obvious that you're-"

Before I could even hear her answer my hand was grabbed as I was roughly snatched away still clutching a lemon in my other hand.

"You were creating a scene." My eyes steadinly narrowed at the Uchiha who had just spoken and was probably the last person in the world I wanted to see at the moment. He stood with his normal confident stance as he removed his ANBU mask from his flawless and impassive face.

"…You were screaming over a lemon."

"What can I say? Produce makes me angry." I haughtily responded, if he wanted to continue to dance around the point, then two could play at this game. He narrowed his eyes to mirror mine and when I had decided nothing was going to come of this confrontation he finally he gave in with a sigh.

"Hn, this is troublesome, but we need to talk about the other day," he said as he stared the other way, his mouth twisted in disgust clearly unhappy that this discussion was taking place.

"You sound like Shikamaru."

"Shikamaru is a smart guy."

"Touché. Well for starters why would you suggest that I go on a date with Naruto? I mean where did that come from?" warily I watched him, Sasuke wasn't one who liked dealing with emotions and I was scared that he would decide that this conversation was too much and disappear at any moment.

After staring off into the distance he turned to me and began to speak perhaps the most he had ever spoken to me since the first week he had arrived home-

"I didn't suggest it because he is overly stressed, even though he is. Sakura, he loves you and I want him to be happy. I want you to be happy. You both are afraid of something that you shouldn't be afraid of. I think you need to give it a chance."

Flabbergasted once again, at for one, Sasuke's impromptu speech and for two, him bringing up that Naruto still loved me; I simply looked at the ground trying my best to formulate a response…

"You're wrong!" of course I realized as soon as the words left my mouth, how absolutely childish I sounded.

With a blank stare and irritation clearly clouding his features Sasuke turned around and began to walk off muttering, "Idiots…I got stuck with a team of idiots."

My anger finally having reached its boiling point I threw the lemon still in my hand straight at the back of his head and felt satisfaction as I heard the _thunk _ and watched as Sasuke pitched forward, clearly caught off guard.

* * *

><p>Naruto POV<p>

Shikamaru's impassive face twisted up as he listened to Ibiki give us the report on what had happened once he had interrogated the rouge ninja I had captured outside Konoha a few days back.

"…..So you're saying he's innocent?"

"I had Inochi examine him as well; it's a mind jutsu, no question."

"Thank you Ibiki, you can go now, I'll send for you if I have any more questions."

Ibiki exited the room leaving me and Shikamaru. Leaning against my desk I mulled over the information that I had just been presented. Apparently the rogue ninja was under some sort of mind jutsu and was not in control of his actions, also whoever was in control of his mind was a damn good shinobi because even Inoichi, after thoroughly searching the rogue ninja's mind, couldn't find who the Mind Puppteer (as I had dubbed him) was behind the attack.

"Shikamaru. This is obviously going to be an S Class mission, any suggestions?"

"We don't really have any solid information and even the rogue ninja he was controlling were from different villages; this guy has done a good job with making sure he can't be traced. I think we need to do some more intel gathering before we form a plan of action." When the genius of Konoha suggests that there is a need for more information, then you know how smart your opponent must be.

"I will go ahead and find Sasuke, so he can form a group of ANBU intel gatherers."

"Alright and Naruto I'm going to assign Shiho and a few others to specifically help in working with the ANBU and analyzing their findings." Shikamaru deep in thought left the office and I climbed through the window and jumped out into the village below where I started my search for Sasuke.

* * *

><p>Sakura POV<p>

It wasn't until Sasuke slowly started to turn around that I realized what I had done….Oh shit.

"Sakura I will give you five seconds."

"Come on Sasuke it was…"

"5, 4, 3…" and without sticking around to hear him get to zero I took off.

_Whoosh_….I turned my head just in time to avoid a flying apple…Apple?...No WAY, was he throwing MY groceries at me?

I quickly turned around mid air and shouted "Sasuke! I just bought those, put them down now!…._thunk_!" Caught off guard I dropped to the ground; my forehead throbbing, where I'm sure there was a mark from whatever fruit he had hit me with. Surprised I sat on the ground for a minute before I looked up to start berating him for ruining my fruit. As I opened my mouth words quickly left me when I saw the laughter dancing in Sasuke's eyes, it was a rare sight and usually it was directed at Naruto. I couldn't help but feel privileged to be the one to cause the mirth that was so obvious in his expression.

"I hope you know you are going grocery shopping and paying for whatever you threw at me." I said with the sternest expression I could muster.

"Of course, but I must say that it was definitely worth it." leapong from the ground I tackled my stoic teammate in a bear hug, it was times like these when I realized how important my friends are to me, especially my boys.

* * *

><p>Naruto POV<p>

It was if time stood still as I watched her fling her arms around his neck, with a smile so wide it was practically breaking her face. I had a task on hand, I reminded myself, I don't have time to dwell on thoughts of Sakura and Sasuke together and on the unjustified jealousy I was feeling. Quickly masking my emotions I approached my two teammates seemingly unaware of my presence.


End file.
